A BRITISH citizen who was allegedly collecting information in Russia's troubled North Caucasus region has been detained and will be deported for violating border rules.

Andrew Harker had a UN identity card but inquiries made through Russia's Foreign Ministry established that he was not in Russia on official UN business, Federal Migration Service spokesman Konstantin Poltoranin said.

Spokeswoman for Russia's UN office Viktoria Zotikova, said Harker was in Russia on a UN-supported research mission. It was part of a global study to "provide information about security environments for humanitarian activity".

Poltoranin said security agencies were investigating whether Harker had links to foreign intelligence services, because according to locals, he had been collecting information for a week.